Walden Group buys three Phoenix-area golf courses for $57 million

New Jersey-based The Walden Group has expanded its Arizona golf holdings with a $57 million purchase of three Phoenix-area courses from Gilbert-based Thompson Golf Group. According to The Real Deal, the portfolio includes Dove Valley Ranch Golf Club in Cave Creek, Power Ranch Golf Club in Gilbert and Longbow Golf Club in Mesa.

The three 18-hole properties span more than 500 acres across metro Phoenix. Longbow Golf Club, a roughly 160-acre course near Higley and McDowell Roads in Mesa, sold for $23.5 million, the highest price in the portfolio. Power Ranch Golf Club, which covers 181 acres, traded for $17.1 million, while the 165-acre Dove Valley Ranch Golf Club changed hands for $16.4 million.

Key Details

The buyer was The Walden Group, an East Coast real estate investment firm based in New Jersey. The seller was Thompson Golf Group, which had owned the three courses for years.

The acquisition was backed in part by a $45 million loan from Davidson Kempner. Even after the sale, Thompson Golf will remain closely involved: the company signed a multiyear agreement to continue operating the three courses, and their leadership teams are expected to stay in place.

The transaction adds to Walden Group’s portfolio of more than two dozen golf properties nationwide. Beyond golf, the firm also invests in multifamily assets. In Arizona, its existing golf holdings include Canoa Ranch Golf Club and Torres Blancas Golf Club in Green Valley, as well as Quarry Pines Golf Club in Tucson.

The deal also comes during an active stretch for Arizona golf investment. The source notes that earlier this month, Colorado-based Mountain Capital Partners announced plans to acquire another three-course Arizona portfolio made up of Tubac Golf Resort & Spa in Tubac, Sedona Golf Resort in Sedona and Rancho Mañana Golf Club in Cave Creek.

Walden founder Steven Schorr told the Phoenix Business Journal that the operating arrangement allows Thompson to focus on its management business while monetizing the value created through improvements to the properties.

Why It Matters

For commercial real estate professionals, the sale is another sign that golf assets in Arizona are drawing sustained investor attention, especially when offered as portfolios with established operations already in place. Deals like this can appeal to buyers looking for scale in a single transaction while limiting operational disruption through management continuity.

The Walden purchase also shows that specialty recreation assets remain part of broader investment strategies, particularly for firms that pair leisure-oriented holdings with other property types such as multifamily. In this case, the combination of three metro Phoenix courses, existing operating teams and acquisition financing made the portfolio a notable Arizona transaction.